Hi, thanks for the awesome report and pictures. I enjoyed the post Tsumke report, as i did it last year april just after the abnormal rainfall the area experience. The difference was that we entered it from Botswana and left Nakoneng at 5:45pm. The mindset was to drive as far as we can and then pitch our tents. That was the plan, but we were forced to deviate when we saw leopard tracks and someone passing by (obviously in 4 x 4) informed us that "the lion will eat you here". To make a long night short, we arrived in a small stat about 8km short of the border at 4:30am the next morning, where we baically fell off our bikes and slept next to them in our full, muddy bike gear. We were done. Frequently picking up fully loaded GS Adventures from the mud does have an enourmes draining effect and it doesn't help that we got stuck (pardon the punn) without anything to drink.At some place the mud/water was to deep and we had to find a way through the bushes. That meant we had to take off our panniers, just to get through the bushes. Possible the most memorible night of my life. I wrote a article about our trip in the 'do it now' magazine. Check it out: http://doitnow.co.za/issue12.phpI think the article starts on page 28.Thanks for the trip we did on 26 December and sorry I coudn't stay for the night down in The Hel.

Hi, thanks for the awesome report and pictures. I enjoyed the post Tsumke report, as i did it last year april just after the abnormal rainfall the area experience. The difference was that we entered it from Botswana and left Nakoneng at 5:45pm. The mindset was to drive as far as we can and then pitch our tents. That was the plan, but we were forced to deviate when we saw leopard tracks and someone passing by (obviously in 4 x 4) informed us that "the lion will eat you here". To make a long night short, we arrived in a small stat about 8km short of the border at 4:30am the next morning, where we baically fell off our bikes and slept next to them in our full, muddy bike gear. We were done. Frequently picking up fully loaded GS Adventures from the mud does have an enourmes draining effect and it doesn't help that we got stuck (pardon the punn) without anything to drink.At some place the mud/water was to deep and we had to find a way through the bushes. That meant we had to take off our panniers, just to get through the bushes. Possible the most memorible night of my life. I wrote a article about our trip in the 'do it now' magazine. Check it out: http://doitnow.co.za/issue12.phpI think the article starts on page 28.Thanks for the trip we did on 26 December and sorry I coudn't stay for the night down in The Hel.

did you see the sign : "Trouble tree.. Shit for the next 11km" hehehe. it would have been at the beginning of your trip, when I got to that sign I was too tired to even care to take out a camara... now afterward I regret not taking a photo there.Im just glad we got off that road while the sun was still up, wouldnt want to be on that road at night like you did.

yip, at stages we also had to take the bikes through the bush, and we also thought of stealth camping at a stage, but at that moment we saw a elephant crossing the road and we decided that if theres elephants there, there would be lions as well, so we also pushed on.

I read the article.... nice! It seems we did the same route you did, (most of it anyway) just in the opposite direction.

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After the rainy season, my best decription of this "road" would be a track through a swamp area. In some places in might have been more suited for a hovercraft rather than the big BMW R 1200 GS ADVENTURES

thats a good description. but is that not the exactly the type of adventure we look for?

oh and

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dont drive at nightin the northern parts ofanywhere in Botswana as the elephants and donkeys are difficult to spot

fixed

it was a pleasure riding with you on the 26th Dec. We will have to do a trip again

Nice ride report...just did a similar trip in June to Botswana with my family in a 4x4. I was particularly interested in your experience of the Tsumkwe road. We almost hit a donkey and a giraffe. After helping someone with a breakdown on that road one realises how remote that part of Namibia is.